Sweet and Sour
by krp101
Summary: In short... Bolt gets into chocolate. Nuff said! This story is in no way related to 'The Adventure Continues' or 'Decoded'. It's just a little two-part short that I had to get out.
1. Chapter 1

Hey everyone! I'm back with a little one-shot about our favorite superdog: Bolt! It's a simple little predicament that I can guarantee will have a few of you thinking; "Huh! This should be interesting!" Enjoy guys!

A/N: I do not own Bolt or any of its characters. All characters are the property of Disney and its subsidiaries.

**Disclaimer: **This story is NOT connected to 'The Adventure Continues' saga. Only the original cast members apply.

**Sweet and Sour**

The life of a dog is that of a spoiled one. There are no schedules to meet, no bills to pay, and your only necessary workout consists of your person throwing a Frisbee while you wag your tail in excitement. You also don't have an alarm clock to wake you up at 6:30 in the morning for work or school; you wake up when you want. Even still, there are some things in your life that must be taken into account as that of a canine: not digging holes in the garden, peeing on the carpet, chasing the neighbor's cat, or eating something you're not supposed to. In the case of Bolt, cats aren't an issue because he lives with one, as well as a hamster, he's very-well house trained, and he has no interest in bones. But getting into trouble….

"Hey Wags! Penny's home." Mittens said as she came down the stairs to find Bolt asleep on the chair. However, at the sound of his person walking through the door, his time for rest was officially over. The white American shepherd dashed off of the chair, and greeted his person with several barks as she walked through the front door.

"Hey, buddy! Did you miss me? Huh? Did you miss me?" Penny asked playfully, setting her backpack down near the door. Bolt answered her with a few more barks before settling down some. Penny made her way to the kitchen to find her mom sitting at the table.

"Hey mom!" Penny greeted

"Hi sweetheart! How was school?" Catherine asked

"It was going great until I hit science class." Penny said in a bit of a slump.

"What happened in science?" Catherine asked as she listened to her daughter.

"Well, Mrs. Parsons will be out for a week, and the substitute teacher assigned us an independent study project. She said that she didn't care what it was about, but it has to be done tomorrow."

"She's only giving you one day?"

"Yeah, pretty much! It's worth 15% of my final grade, but if I get an A, that'll bump me up to an A- for the semester. The only problem is that I have only one idea on what I'm gonna do it on."

"What's the idea?" Catherine asked again.

"Viscosity of liquids. I did the same project last year for science, but I never kept the material. So, now I have to do the experiments all over again. Plus… it's not exactly A+ material."

"Well, it doesn't have to be flashy; just accurate. How long will it take?"

"Probably all night." Penny answered

"I might be able to help. I'm gonna order take-out, because I'm just too tired to cook. And this way, we can work on it together and have it done by bedtime."

"Really?" Penny asked in shock.

"Sure. I helped you with the project LAST year, and I can still remember some of it." Catherine answered.

"Awesome! We'll start around 5. Right now, I need some rest." Penny said rubbing her eyes.

"No problem, kiddo!" Catherine said with a smile. With that, Penny picked up her bag, and carried it up to her room, while Catherine began to clear the kitchen table. All the while, Bolt and Mittens were watching the ordeal from back in the living room, wondering what was going on.

"What was that all about?" Bolt asked

"Penny has a big project for school, apparently." Mittens answered still looking into the kitchen. Bolt looked at Mittens, wondering what she meant.

"What's a…. project?" Bolt asked feeling somewhat stupid.

"Um… it's something that kids have to do for school. I guess to show that they're actually learning something instead of just playing on their phones." Mittens explained, in the best way she could. Bolt still seemed a little confused by the idea from what Mittens could tell.

"Ugh… Just watch her while she does it. You might learn a little something yourself." Mittens said sarcastically. Bolt just rolled his eyes at the statement and smiled. The black cat turned around and flicked her tail upwards as she walked away, accidently hitting Bolt on the nose. The shepherd jumped back some, using his paw to brush the strange feeling off of his nose.

"Oh, I'm sorry Bolt! I didn't mean to do that; I swear!" Mittens said turning back after she'd realized what had happened.

"It's okay, it happens." Bolt said letting her know that he was okay. Mittens stepped back a few inches, hoping he wasn't too upset about it; something that Bolt was quick to notice.

"Mittens, it's okay. Really! It just made me jump a little, that's all!" Bolt said almost pleading with her.

"I know, but every time I did something stupid back in New York, it usually meant that I should run. It's just a reflex for me." Mittens explained in some detail. She knew it was nothing to freak out about, but Bolt seemed genuinely worried that she was afraid of him.

"You don't ever have to be afraid of me. I'd protect you with my life, just like I do for Penny." Bolt said looking her square in the eye. Being taken aback by the previous words, Mittens looked at the canine with curiosity. She's always thought that she was nothing special and not really worth saving if something happened.

"You…really?" Mittens asked still in some shock.

"Absolutely!" Bolt said with true honesty. It was almost too much for Mittens to bear, as one stray tear fell from her cheek, not going unnoticed by Bolt as he reached forward and pulled her into a hug.

"Oh, come here." Bolt said softly. Mittens didn't know what to feel, but she figured that it wouldn't matter. It was just a kind gesture of someone saying that they would protect her; she'd do the same for him if she ever needed to.

"Thanks, I appreciate it." Mittens said pulling her head out of Bolt's chest.

"No biggy!'' Bolt said with a smile, and he walked up to Penny's room to see what she was up to. Mittens, on the other hand, started to think deeply.

"What was **that **about?" Mittens asked herself as she jumped onto couch.

**(After dinner)**

It was about 6:30pm, and Penny was beginning to set up everything she needed for her project. She had her notebook for observations, all the liquids she needed, and test tubes.

"Okay, so what do we need to do?" Catherine asked

"Well, all 5 of the liquids have to be poured down each of the boards, which are set at exactly 5* angles. From there, we measure just how long it takes for each liquid to reach the end of the board." Penny explained to her mother.

_**Science fact: **__**Viscosity: **__**A liquid's resistance to flow.**_

"Okay, let's get started. What are the liquids?"

"We have vegetable oil, honey, chocolate syrup, dishwashing liquid, and antifreeze." Penny answered. As the experiment started, Bolt, Mittens, and Rhino all walked into the kitchen to see what all the fuss was about.

"So, what did you pull me away from 'CSI:Miami' for exactly?" Rhino asked somewhat bitterly.

"Will you just chill out and watch?" Mittens said getting annoyed by the hamster's cranky state. The three animals watched intently as Penny and her mom performed each test, and recorded all of the information. They had finished their experiments for the antifreeze, dishwashing liquid, and the vegetable oil; and that just left the honey and chocolate syrup.

"I still don't get it, but it must be pretty important." Bolt said losing track of exactly what it was they were supposed to be learning. And he wasn't the only one.

"Yeah, I thought it was gonna be something a little cooler." Mittens said agreeing with her canine counterpart.

"Great. Can I go now?" Rhino asked before turning away to return to his TV show. Mittens decided to follow the hamster back to the couch, figuring the show was over. Suddenly, Bolt heard a thump coming from around the corner in the kitchen. The noise had gone unnoticed by Penny and her mom, who were still hard at work on Penny's project, so Bolt took the initiative and headed for the kitchen. When he reached it, he noticed that the window was open and a strong wind was starting to blow through the house, which settled fairly quickly.

"That was weird." Bolt said to himself. Still walking, he came across a black plastic bottle that was lying on the floor, spewing its contents into a giant brown pool.

"What the…" Bolt began before reaching the container and reading the label: Hershey's Chocolate Syrup.

"Hmmm." Bolt said curiously as he sniffed it. In an instant, he was taken away by the sweet scent. It smelt so wonderful; a smile slowly began to grow on his face. As he brought his face in closer, his tongue gave a quick swipe of the sweet liquid, which soon turned into another 3 long licks of the sugary topping.

"This stuff is good." Bolt said for the last time before he finished cleaning the entire bottle's contents off of the floor. It took him no more than 5 minutes before the floor was practically spotless.

"Man, humans get all the good food!" Bolt said somewhat complaining, having never gotten the chance to try the so-called _chocolate syrup._ The shepherd walked away to tell Mittens and Rhino about the near-heavenly experience he just had with the new food. He passed by Penny once more, who was just finishing the results of her experiment with the honey, when he finally reached the couch.

"Hey guys!" Bolt said happily.

"Hey wags! Where'd you go?" Mittens asked

"To the kitchen. The wind knocked over some black bottle from the counter that had this really sweet stuff in it, and it tastes so good." Bolt said getting a little excited.

"What is it?" Mittens asked again.

"I think it's called 'Chocolate syrup'." Bolt said trying to remember.

"Hmmm. Is there any left?" Mittens asked once more.

"I don't think so. I think I finished the bottle off." Bolt said laughing, in turn causing Mittens to laugh as well.

"God, dogs will eat anything." Mittens said sarcastically.

"Hey, if it's good enough, we just might." Bolt said throwing his own smart remark into the conversation, which Mittens just laughed at. The canine jumped onto the couch to watch CSI is Mittens and Rhino, while Penny and her mom started work on the last liquid.

"We might need some more syrup, honey." Catherine said

"Okay, I'll go get some." Penny said heading for the kitchen. When she looked on the counter, she noticed that it was gone. After feeling a fairly strong breeze from the open window, Penny shut it, and went back to searching for the chocolate bottle, which she found pushed against the side of the cupboard below the sink.

"There you are. The wind must've knocked you over." Penny said picking it up, and noticed that the tip had been popped open, and it was almost completely empty. The look on her face showed signs of confusion and curiosity.

"Didn't we just buy this bottle yesterday?" Penny asked herself before turning around to head back to the kitchen table.

"Um Mom! The bottle's almost gone." Penny said as she walked into the room. Catherine took the bottle from her daughter, and noticed that she was right.

"We just bought this on Sunday." Catherine stated

"That's what I thought."

"Where did it all go?"

"Well, one thing's for sure; I'm gonna need to find another liquid since we don't have any more syrup. I'll check the garage for something." Penny said walking out the back door and heading for the garage. Catherine, who was still holding the bottle, wondered how an entire bottle of chocolate syrup could just magically disappear like that. She set the bottle back on the kitchen counter next to the phone before going back to helping Penny with the project

**(Bolt, Mittens, and Rhino)**

About 30 minutes had passed since Bolt had depleted Penny and her mom of the chocolate syrup, and Penny was currently running through the house trying to find another liquid to use. Bolt watched her every move, along with Mittens.

"What is she doing?" Mittens asked

"I have no idea." Bolt answered. All of a sudden, Bolt started to feel a tightening in his stomach, causing him to cringe a little, and let out a short moan. Mittens looked at him, wondering if he was alright.

"You okay?" Mittens asked again.

"I think so. My stomach just hurts a little." Bolt said with the sharp pain in his gut seeming to get just a little worse with every passing second. Bolt then started to shake somewhat, not sure what was going on as he stood up. Mittens watched as fear plastered itself all over Bolt's face.

"Bolt, what's wrong?" Mittens asked, now with some fear of her own.

"I…I don't know. My stomach feels like someone's taking a hammer and chisel to it." Bolt said, explaining the graphic details of his pain to Mittens. The small feline just stood there, not really knowing how to help Bolt, but her fear quickly increased and caused her to start panicking. Suddenly, Bolt dropped to his stomach and began to groan louder in pain, which quickly caught Rhino's attention.

"What's going on?" Rhino asked

"There's something wrong with Bolt, and I don't know what it is." Mittens explained to the hamster. Rhino jumped off of the arm of the couch to join his friends. Bolt's groaning died down a little, but it was still evident that something was terribly wrong with him.

"What do we do?" Rhino asked

"Go…get Penny." Bolt said with a raspy voice. Mittens bounded off of the couch and ran straight for Penny's leg, giving it small slaps with her declawed paw. Penny looked down at small black cat, and bent down to her level after setting her notebook back on the table.

"What's wrong, Mittens? Are you hungry?" Penny asked as she picked her up, thinking that was the issue. Mittens began to squirm some, wishing so badly she could just tell Penny was the problem was. As a sign of hope, Bolt let out a moderate groan, which managed to catch both Penny and her mom's ears. As they looked over to the couch, they saw their white shepherd practically hunched over half of the cushion like he was about ready to fall off, moaning steadily.

"Bolt?" Penny said as she set Mittens back to the floor and walked up to her dog.

"Hey! What's the matter, Bolt?" Penny asked beginning to worry. Catherine knelt down in front of Bolt and scratched his ears a little in an attempt to calm him down, and pulling out a flashlight to look into his eyes soon after.

"Honey, his eyes are dilating. Did he hit his head on something?" Catherine asked Penny.

"I don't think so." Penny said checking his head for any bumps or scrapes, and soon finding nothing.

"No, I don't see anything." Penny followed up to answer her mom's question.

"What's the matter, boy?" Catherine asked as she continued to stare at Bolt. The white shepherd tried as hard as he could to curl up into a ball as he clutched his stomach with his paws. It was something both Penny and her mom were quick to notice.

"Is it his stomach?" Penny asked

"Maybe." Catherine answered as she tried to pull Bolt's paw away from his torso to examine it. With every second she looked at Bolt's lower half, his groans became louder and louder.

"Okay, easy buddy! Penny, would you go and call the vet's office?" Catherine asked her daughter.

"It's 7-o-clock! Are they even still open?" Penny returned with a question of her own.

"We might be able to catch them if they haven't left yet." Catherine answered. Penny wanted to debate, but her only concern was making sure that Bolt was okay. The teenage girl walked into the kitchen and picked up the phone to start dialing. Suddenly, she noticed the chocolate syrup bottle just sitting there. She instantly threw down the phone and picked it up, remembering how empty the bottle was when she found it…..on the floor!

"MOM!" Penny shouted from the kitchen as she ran back through the house, trying to figure out whether or not her mom heard her. She dashed around the last corner into the living room, and saw Bolt and her mother in the same spots they were last time.

"Mom, the chocolate syrup!" Penny shouted; this time, a little quieter.

"What about the…" Catherine asked before understanding what Penny was trying to say.

"Oh no!"

_**Note: Dogs can't have any kind of chocolate. There's a certain chemical in the cocoa that basically eats away at the lining of their intestines, and will eventually find its way to the liver and cause it to shut down.**_

"What do we do?" Penny asked

"Did you call the vet yet?"

"No! When I saw the bottle, I came back in here to tell you."

"Give them a call. If you can't get a hold of them, try a vet clinic that works after hours." Catherine ordered

"Okay." Penny said rushing back to the kitchen.

**(Mittens)**

"Bolt! Please stay with us! It's gonna be okay." Mittens pleaded. Bolt could only show how much pain he was in by the facial expressions he was making; each one looking more excruciating than the last. Mittens watched as her friend continued to moan in searing pain.

"Listen to me, Bolt! You're not going anywhere. You're gonna stay with us… with me." Mittens said as tears staring rolling down her face.

"What are you… talking about? I've always been here." Bolt said trying to fight the pain and talk at the same time.

"I know, but… just like you said earlier. You said that you'd protect me with your life, and I'd do the same for you. No one's ever said that to me…and I love knowing it. And I….I love you." Mittens admitted. Bolt looked at the small black cat with eyes as wide as they could go. Rhino stood right next to the two of them, not able to move through the shock. But that didn't mean he couldn't speak.

"Whoa… you probably should've told him that on the day he might die." Rhino said half sarcastically and half seriously. Mittens shoved the small rodent across the hardwood floor in anger.

"Shut up! He isn't gonna die!" Mittens shouted

"Well, with the pain in my gut… ugh! I just might." Bolt said as he groaned even louder and breathing very heavily. Penny came back into the room with the phone book in her arms, and the phone to her ear.

"Okay, can we bring him in right now?... Great, we'll be there in about 15 minutes….. Thank you so much. Bye!" Penny said speaking back and forth with the receptionist at the veterinary clinic before hanging up.

"So, what did they say?" Catherine asked

"Well, Jacobson's office was closed for the night; but I found a clinic about 15 minutes away from here." Penny explained

"Great." Catherine said as she gently picked Bolt up and carried him in her arms as they headed for the front door. Mittens tried her best to follow them out, but was stopped by Penny trying to keep her inside.

"We'll be back soon, Mittens." Penny said as she closed the door behind her, leaving just Mittens and Rhino in the house by themselves. Mittens jumped to the top of the couch to stare out the window as the dog she loved was being whisked away to someplace she'd never heard of. As more tears continued to fall from her eyes, she slowly jumped to the cushion of the couch and looked at Rhino, who was sitting in the same placed he was pushed to when he shot his mouth off.

"Sorry." Mittens said with a thickened voice, trying to apologize for shoving him earlier. Rhino just responded with a shake of his head, letting her know that it was okay. For now, all they could do was wait, and hope that Bolt would be okay. Mittens' thoughts quickly changed from Bolt dying to her being in love with him. She started to wish she had told him when she'd gone to live with him, and then wished she hadn't said it at all.

"So, how long have you been in love with Bolt?" Rhino asked the broken-hearted feline, hoping she would fill in some gaps.

"Um, well…"

**End of PART 1**

Okay, gang! This will be a 2-part story, just because it seems necessary, instead of just one long rambling. Obviously, I've left you guys with a lot of unanswered questions, and that was kinda the idea. I'm curious to hear what you have to say, as always; so, send in those reviews, and I'll have Part 2 up as soon as I can.

Sayonara!


	2. Chapter 2

Well, Part 2 has arrived; which means we'll get a chance to see how Bolt about Mittens saying that she loves him; if he can get past the wrenching pain in his gut. Speaking of which…

A/N: I do not own Bolt or any of its characters. All characters are the property of Disney and its subsidiaries.

**Sweet and Sour PART 2**

"_So, how long have you been in love with Bolt?" Rhino asked the broken-hearted feline, hoping she would fill in some gaps._

"_Um, well… _I guess it started when we both came home with him. He was just… always there when I needed him." Mittens explained

"And… you never told him?" Rhino asked

"Obviously not!" Mittens said sarcastically.

"Okay, relax…. you'll just have to wait until he comes home." Rhino said trying to think of something to say. Mittens looked at the hamster and gave him a look of rage and curiosity, wondering why he would say that.

"Rhino, you just told me to relax, and you expect THAT to do the trick? Bolt… could die… today!" Mittens asked as if he was stupid.

"We don't have a choice, cat." Rhino said forcefully. Mittens looked back at the window, wishing she could just open the door with her paws and chase down the car. But as it was, Rhino was right. The small black cat walked to the couch in a slump, and lay down on the corner cushion, preparing for what would be one of the longest nights of her life.

**(Bolt)**

The white shepherd was being hoisted out of the back seat of the car, and rushed into some building known only as… the vet. Bolt had been to the vet once a year for a check-up, but this was no check-up. This was life or death! And that only made his nerves all the shakier, even though he couldn't feel them beneath the searing pain in his gut. Penny, still carrying Bolt in her arms, walked inside the building with her mom only steps behind.

"Are you the Russo's?" the receptionist asked.

"Yes, we are." Penny answered in a panic.

"Okay, I'll run and grab Dr. Hanter." the receptionist said as she got out of her seat and walked to the back room. Seconds later, Dr. Hanter appeared with his lab coat on, and ready to go.

"Hello. Please follow me." Hanter ordered, to which Penny and her mother obeyed. As they entered the back room he had just come from, Bolt was set on the examination table, still cringing in pain.

"So, what exactly happened?" Hanter asked

"He got into our chocolate syrup bottle." Catherine answered

"Oooh! Alright, I'm gonna have to ask you guys to leave the room."

"What are you gonna do?" Penny asked

"You'll just have to trust me." Hanter answered as he looked Penny in the eye. He knew she was scared, and didn't want to be separated from her dog; however, for the sake of her sanity, it was better if she wasn't around. Penny gave a small nod as she followed her mother back out into the waiting room, and the door shut. Dr. Hanter turned the table around so that Bolt could look at him.

"Hey buddy! I'm gonna do my best to make sure you make it outta here alive, okay?" Dr. Hanter said looking at the dying canine. Bolt managed to look up momentarily at the only person he could fully trust to save his life, and whined a little, hoping the doctor understood what he was trying to say.

"You're welcome!" Hanter said smiling as he gently picked Bolt up and carried him out of the examination room and into the prepping room….used mostly for surgery.

**(Penny and her mom)**

"How could this have happened?" Catherine asked as she and Penny waited anxiously in the waiting room.

"The window in the kitchen was open, and the wind knocked over the bottle. If I had just put it back in the fridge, this wouldn't be happening." Penny said breaking down and crying into her lap. Catherine scooted over to her daughter and pulled her into her shoulder to cry freely.

"This was nobody's fault, sweetheart! You had no idea what was happening." Catherine said with assurance. Even with the kind words, Penny still felt a wave of guilt wash over her.

**(Back to Bolt)**

"Okay, buddy. I need you to drink some water. Can you do that for me?" Dr. Hanter asked as he placed a small bowl of water in front of the canine's muzzle. Bolt slowly lifted his head, and sniffed the bowl. After figuring out what was in his face, he began drinking. At first, it tasted like ordinary water; however, as he continued to down gulp after gulp, he noticed that something about the water made it taste bitter. Blaming it on his stomach screaming, he finished off what was left of the murky-tasting water. It did seem to help just having something inside his system that WASN'T causing him to shriek.

"Thank you, Bolt. I'll be back in in just a few minutes." Hanter said before leaving the room, and walking down the hallway to the waiting room. As he passed one of his assistants, he nodded to her, suggesting that what he was planning was working. She gave a nod back, and went back to work. Dr. Hanter walked into view of Penny and her mother, and smiled as he caught their eye.

"How is he?" Catherine asked with Penny sitting right next to her, wondering the same thing.

"He'll be fine, but he shouldn't be doing much physical activity for the next few weeks. I just gave him a bowl with half water and half hydrogen peroxide, and he drank it all." Hanter explained. Penny and her mom looked at the vet, wondering what he was thinking.

"Isn't hydrogen peroxide a poison?" Catherine asked blatantly.

"To humans, yes; but, a dog's stomach is like a sewer, and the hydrogen peroxide acts as a cleaning agent. One of my assistants knows what's going on, and she'll come inform me when Bolt is finished."

"Finished with what?" Penny asked

"Vomiting." Hanter said plainly.

_**Dog Fact: To humans, hydrogen peroxide is used primarily for cleaning a wound or as an oral rinse. However, if you're dog ever gets into chocolate, you can either give it a bowl made up of half water and half hydrogen peroxide, or feed it 2 tablespoons of straight hydrogen peroxide. Give it about half an hour, make sure that they're outside, and eventually, they will throw up the contents of their stomach. It will save you a trip to the vet's office, and a hefty bill.**_

"And you're sure this'll work?" Penny asked

"Positive. Make sure he's off his feet as much as possible for the next few weeks, and give him plenty of water. The hydrogen peroxide may get rid of the chocolate problem, but it can also dehydrate a dog's stomach very rapidly. Basically, if he whines, it's because he's thirsty, and he'll be thirsty a whole lot." Hanter continued to explain as he sat with Catherine and Penny in the waiting room.

"Dr. Hanter!" called his assistant from the hallway.

"Yes!" Hanter responded

"Bolt's done." she said with a smile of relief on her face, causing Dr. Hanter to smile right back. The vet got up and led Penny and Catherine to the back room, where Bolt was sleeping soundly on a large blanket in the examination room. Penny sighed in contentment, happy to see her 'good boy' in a moment where he wasn't squirming in pain.

"He looks so much better." Catherine said smiling.

"I bet he feels it too." Penny said with a wider smile.

"He's on a low-dose sedative, because throwing up can cause severe dizziness for a dog. He'll wake up tomorrow morning, but for now, he'll sleep like a rock." Hanter's assistant explained to the group.

"Thank you, Gloria." Hanter said

"Yes! Thank you! To the both of you." Penny said looking at the vet and assistant. They both gave accepting nods before lifting Bolt from his blanket, and carrying him to the car. Penny waited with the exhausted canine in the car, while her mother took care of the vet bill. As they waited for Catherine to finish, Penny stroked Bolt's fur as his head lay on her lap in the back seat.

"You're a good boy... You're _my _good boy!" Penny whispered into Bolt's ear, causing it to twitch as he slept. Penny snickered silently at the sight. The driver's side door of the car opened up and Catherine slid inside, starting the car shortly after.

"How's he doing?" Catherine asked as she looked in the rear view mirror, back at Penny.

"He looks so much better." Penny said smiling. The car ride home took about 30 minutes, but felt like so much longer. Penny opened the door, and carried the sleeping dog up the front steps of their house. As the front door opened, Mittens and Rhino woke up from their snooze on the couch. Mittens instantly jumped off of the cushion and ran towards Penny.

"It's okay, Mittens. Bolt's gonna be okay." Penny said smiling. Mittens looked back at Rhino, who was still on the couch, but had a 'be-awesome' sized smile on his face. Mittens laughed a little in response to it, but soon after, felt tears forming in her eyes. She still had a chance to hear how Bolt felt about her.

"Are you okay?" Rhino asked the feline.

"Bolt's alive! Of course I'm okay." Mittens answered as more tears came streaming from her eyes. Rhino smiled as he reached for the power button on the TV remote, and flipped on 'Criminal Minds'. As Penny set him down on his bed in the living room, Mittens snuck up and crawled into the bed alongside the sleeping canine. As she tried to find a comfortable position, she felt an arm pull her into Bolt's soft chest. She turned her head as far as she could to find that it was Bolt's arm. He was subconsciously pulling her towards him, not that she minded much at all. She squirmed a little and settled herself as Bolt's strong grip got a little tighter around her back, and her face nuzzled against his chest. It wasn't long before she fell asleep in his grasp, dreaming of, if anything, that the night wouldn't end. Even if the morning came and he didn't love her, she still had this one moment to cherish.

"Phew! I hope we never have to relive that nightmare again." Penny said as she sat down at the kitchen table.

"I agree." Catherine said walking into the kitchen. Penny looked at the table and realized something…. something…. incomplete.

"Oh crap! My project! I never finished it." Penny said as she glanced at all of the supplies on the table. She then looked over at the clock on the wall, which read **11:14pm.**

"Were we really at the vet's office for that long?" Penny asked astonished.

"I guess so. Well, at least you only have one more liquid to go. I'd love to help you, honey; but I can't stay awake any longer." Catherine said apologetically.

"I understand." Penny said as she looked over at Bolt in his bed. All of a sudden, she noticed something else in the bed with him. It was Mittens. She smiled seeing the cuteness of the scene, and reached across the table, where her camera sat ready for her to use. Turning it on, she looked back at the sleeping couple and waited for the picture to load. As she snapped the photo and dispensed it, she slowly pulled the camera from her vision, and had an idea. The teenage girl pulled the photo from her camera, looking at it so intently.

"That's it!" Penny said setting the camera back on the table, and clearing the rest of it of the supplies she had scattered in every part. She ran up to her room and got to work. On what?

**(The Next Day: 2:20pm)**

"I'm basing this independent study project off of an incident that occurred at my house and a vet's office all of last night. The topic: 'Dogs and Chocolate'!" Penny said beginning the presentation of her project. In the course of 20 minutes, she managed to fit in almost every detail of the night before, mostly focusing on what she learned from the vet's office and what to do if your canine ingests chocolate. Using sympathy as a side-note, she gained more credit from the substitute teacher after hearing that Bolt had done the same thing. Penny had stayed up until almost 2 o'clock in the morning putting the presentation together, and she was hoping and praying that everything would work out in the end.

"Thank you very much, Penny! How is Bolt doing?" asked the substitute teacher.

"He's doing fine. I managed to snap this picture last night after everything had happened." Penny said passing the picture she'd taken of Bolt and Mittens sleeping around the class of 20+ students. A collection of 'Awww!'s were given throughout the passing of the picture until it got around to the substitute.

"Oh, that is just adorable!"

"I thought so too." Penny said smiling. After school was out, the grades were being displayed for the semester and Penny couldn't wait to see how she did. She met up with her boyfriend, Michael, outside the board where the grades were posted and gave him a kiss.

"Hey, how'd you do?" Penny asked Michael.

"Really well. I'm sittin' pretty with a 92% average for the semester." Michael said happy with his grades.

"That's awesome, baby!" Penny said complimenting her boyfriend.

"Thanks, but you might wanna take a look at YOUR grades for Parsons." Michael said leading Penny towards the grade section for her science class. What she saw made her smile widely.

"Oh my God! I did it!" Penny said excitedly. Her grade on the project was a 98%. As she rounded up the numbers in her head, she realized that she'd been bumped up to a 94% for the semester.

"I got a 94% for the semester." Penny said happily.

"Wait a minute! You beat me? Looks like I got my work cut out for me NEXT semester." Michael said with a sinister smile. Penny shook her head and laughed before kissing him. She walked out to the bus, where it was a 20 minutes ride home; one she had been waiting for since she'd left the same morning. She was finally gonna get to see Bolt awake since the night before.

**(5 hours earlier)**

It was now about 10:00am, and Bolt was beginning to wake up. As he opened his eyes, he felt something warm around his front, and looked down to find Mittens in his grasp and sleeping soundly. Bolt couldn't help but wonder how he'd gotten home last night, but it didn't matter. What did matter was that he was alive. His stomach was still giving him grief, and his mouth felt very dry for some reason. He tried his best to wiggle his way out of the bed without waking Mittens up, but eventually, his impatience when it came to getting water made him get up too fast and Mittens' head fell to the bed, jolting her from her sleep.

"Wh-wha…" Mittens said trying to gain her composure, and looked around her to find that Bolt wasn't in his bed; in fact, he wasn't anywhere to be seen. She could hear faint noises coming from the kitchen and trotted towards the sounds, to find Bolt gulping down his entire bowl of water. At the rate he was drinking it; you would swear he'd been in the desert for 5 days without it. As Bolt came up for air seconds later, gasping but satisfied. After he calmed down, he was finally able to breathe normally, and turned around to find Mittens looking at him from the corner of the kitchen.

"Sorry… I tried my best not to wake you, but…"

"Oh no, it's fine. You…okay?" Mittens asked wondering what was going on. Bolt looked at the black cat and smiled as he thought about why she would ask that.

"I'm happy to be alive." Bolt said smiling, causing Mittens to smile right back.

"Bolt, I… about what I said last night; I didn't mean to throw you off like that, but you were…"

"I love you too." Bolt said plainly and cutting Mittens off. Mittens was completely frozen in place. Could what he said have been true? Did he really love her back?

"What?" Mittens asked in shock.

"I love you too, Mittens." Bolt said once more, and slowly walked towards her and kissed her lips softly. In an instant, the two animals seemed to make the world stand still. With their eyes closed, they continued to kiss for another 30 seconds before Bolt broke them apart.

"Really?" Mittens asked

"Yeah… really. All throughout the time I was at the vet, I kept thinking about what would happen if I didn't make it. I'd be abandoning you. And because of that….I realized that I DO love you. I already feel the need to protect you, and that'll never change. But, you mean more to me than just a friend." Bolt said in the most heartfelt way he could. Mittens stared at Bolt, who by now was trying his best to hold back tears of joy. The black cat buried her face into the canine's chest and cried silently with Bolt holding her gently with his free arm, almost like he was cradling her.

"I love you." Bolt said lowering his head towards Mittens' ears, and causing them to twitch when she heard his speak. His angelic voice made her feel so safe.

"I love you too, Bolt." Mittens said pulling her head out of his chest. Bolt leaned in and kissed her once more, this time, sending a shiver up her spine. After breaking the kiss again, Bolt lead Mittens to his bed, where they laid down wrapped in each other's fur.

"So, what exactly happened at the vet's office?" Mittens asked starting up a conversation.

"Oooh… where do I begin?" Bolt asked

**(The night before: Bolt's POV)**

"_Okay, so this guy thinks some murky tasting water is gonna make me feel better? This guy is nuts" I thought as I got to my feet slowly. It DID feel good to have something in my stomach, though. I still felt the pain down there, but I could walk; that was a start. There wasn't really much I could do until the doc got back. All of a sudden, I felt this weird feeling in my stomach, and I know it wasn't the chocolate doing it. _

_Ugh… what's wrong now?" I asked myself as I continued to walk. And then…_

"_What did he do to me?" I asked myself once more; however, I didn't have time to answer due to one thing…. I started throwing up. I couldn't walk, I couldn't think, I could barely move at all. I could just stand there and let it all come up. I just wasn't able to keep it down. At one point, it got hard for me to breathe, but by the time I ran out of air, the hurling stopped and I was able to inhale._

"_Oh my God! What the hell just happened?" I asked myself again. Suddenly, I heard the door to the office open, and I jumped back. I saw some random woman walk in and looked around to see the floor covered in the contents of my gut._

"_Whoa, Bolt! It looks like it worked." the lady said. What? Was this supposed to happen? I took a couple steps back, not sure if she was gonna get upset, but she seemed to notice that I was a little uneasy_

"_Oh, it's okay, Bolt. I'll get this cleaned up. You're not in trouble." she said. I walked up closer to her, and she scratched my head gently, but then, I felt this small…prick in my side. Like someone just stuck a dart in my hip, and then…then…_

**(Present time)**

"I don't remember much after that. I think I remember Penny talking to me, but my memory's not the best." Bolt said explaining the night to Mittens.

"Huh! Well now, the vet just scared me even more." Mittens said

"I don't know. I didn't feel too scared. But then again, I also don't remember everything." Bolt said laughing a little. Mittens smiled, just happy to have him alive.

"Don't you ever scare me like that again! I don't think I could lose you for real." Mittens said finally succumbing to a trail of tears that started running down her cheeks. Bolt reached around her back and pulled her head towards his own, doing his best to comfort her.

"I'm not going anywhere, Mittens; now that I have you." Bolt said nuzzling her softly. Mittens continued to cry for a few more minutes, now that she felt like she could, and Bolt wasn't about to deny her the right.

"So, how do think Rhino's gonna take us being together?" Bolt asked his new mate.

"Ha!... I think he's just fine with it." Mittens said laughing a little bit. Bolt shook his head and rested it on the edge of the bed, where he tried to get some sleep. Mittens, however, looked at the stairs, where a little brown hamster was standing and watching. She gave a wink to Rhino, smiling as she did so, which caused him to return one of his own before he bounded up each of the steps to the 2nd floor, where he could still watch the 'magic box' and give Bolt and Mittens some privacy.

"Absolutely…. 'Be-Awesome'!"

****End of Story****

Well, this little 2-part short wasn't exactly what I had expected to bring back to the 'Bolt' page; however, I hope I did it justice anyway. As for what's to come from me, I have a bit of a surprise for you guys. My senior year English teacher decided to use 'The Adventure Continues' and 'Decoded' as teaching tools for the next semester's Advanced Composition class, which means that my work is gonna be seen by over 400 students, and they don't even know that I'm the author. It's kinda cool! And the only thing he wants me to do to repay him…. write a Part 3! So now, 'The Adventure Continues' and 'Decoded' will see a final act! A TRILOGY! I'll see you guys sometime next month with the 1st chapter. Have a great September!

Sayonara!


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